scholarly journals West African countries plan to strengthen health systems after Ebola

BMJ ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 349 (dec15 16) ◽  
pp. g7668-g7668 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Gulland
Keyword(s):  
Health Systems ◽  
West African ◽  
African Countries

The Coin of the African Realm

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Herbst
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
West Africa ◽  
West African ◽  
Regional Economies ◽  
African Countries ◽  
New Strategies

This chapter examines the politics of the currency in West Africa from the beginning of the twentieth century. A public series of debates over the nature of the currency occurred in West Africa during both the colonial and independence periods. Since 1983, West African countries have been pioneers in Africa in developing new strategies to combat overvaluation of the currency and reduce the control of government over the currency supply. The chapter charts the evolution of West African currencies as boundaries and explores their relationship to state consolidation. It shows that leaders in African capitals managed to make the units they ruled increasingly distinct from the international and regional economies, but the greater salience of the currency did not end up promoting state consolidation. Rather, winning the ability to determine the value of the currency led to a series of disastrous decisions that severely weakened the states themselves.

Political Stability in West African States: Problems and Solutions. (Case Studies of Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal)

2018 ◽  
pp. 75-88
Author(s):  
Lyubov Sadovskaya
Keyword(s):  
Cote D'ivoire ◽  
Côte D’Ivoire ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
West African ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Cote D’Ivoire ◽  
External Threats ◽  
Côte D'ivoire

The article presents a new view on the problems of political stability in West African countries. For the first time was carried out a comparative analysis of the sustainability of the political systems of the two Francophone fastest growing countries in West Africa, Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal. The author analyzes the factors negatively influencing political stability social order, and those that reduce conflict potencial in these States. Internal and external threats to the political systems of Senegal and Сôte d’Ivoire are examined. The response of both countries to internal and external challenges is shown. The study proves that while external threats indanger Senegal’s political stability, such as the penetration of religious extremism, the crisis in Casamance, maritime piracy, drug traffic, for Côte d’Ivoire, on the contrary, main risks are internal: electoral, socio-political crises, the split of elites, arms smuggling, banditry. The study demonstrates that the level of social governance in Senegal is higher than in other West African countries, including Сôte d’Ivoire, due to the dualism of the political system: the coexistence of Western-style political institutions with local faiths (tariqas), as well as policy pursued by President M. Sall. aimed at achieving mutual compromise that ensure the peaceful settlement of conflicts and contradictions. The author concludes that a new approach to the development of a security strategy is required.

scholarly journals Climate Change and Health Preparedness in Africa: Analysing Trends in Six African Countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (9) ◽  
pp. 4672
Author(s):  
Samuel Kwasi Opoku ◽  
Walter Leal Filho ◽  
Fudjumdjum Hubert ◽  
Oluwabunmi Adejumo
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Basic Knowledge ◽  
African Countries

Climate change is a global problem, which affects the various geographical regions at different levels. It is also associated with a wide range of human health problems, which pose a burden to health systems, especially in regions such as Africa. Indeed, across the African continent public health systems are under severe pressure, partly due to their fragile socioeconomic conditions. This paper reports on a cross-sectional study in six African countries (Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Namibia, Ethiopia, and Kenya) aimed at assessing their vulnerabilities to climate change, focusing on its impacts on human health. The study evaluated the levels of information, knowledge, and perceptions of public health professionals. It also examined the health systems’ preparedness to cope with these health hazards, the available resources, and those needed to build resilience to the country’s vulnerable population, as perceived by health professionals. The results revealed that 63.1% of the total respondents reported that climate change had been extensively experienced in the past years, while 32% claimed that the sampled countries had experienced them to some extent. Nigerian respondents recorded the highest levels (67.7%), followed by Kenya with 66.6%. South Africa had the lowest level of impact as perceived by the respondents (50.0%) when compared with the other sampled countries. All respondents from Ghana and Namibia reported that health problems caused by climate change are common in the two countries. As perceived by the health professionals, the inadequate resources reiterate the need for infrastructural resources, medical equipment, emergency response resources, and technical support. The study’s recommendations include the need to improve current policies at all levels (i.e., national, regional, and local) on climate change and public health and to strengthen health professionals’ skills. Improving the basic knowledge of health institutions to better respond to a changing climate is also recommended. The study provides valuable insights which may be helpful to other nations in Sub-Saharan Africa.

scholarly journals Community hygiene against lassa fever disease and its predictors in a Nigerian rural settlement

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
A A Gobir ◽  
C L Ejembi ◽  
A A Aliyu ◽  
M B Garba ◽  
C J C Igboanusi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
West African ◽  
World Health ◽  
Food Storage ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Effective Prevention ◽  
Viral Haemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Hygiene Measures

Abstract Background Lassa fever disease (LFD) is a viral haemorrhagic fever that is endemic in some West african countries where an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 cases and 5000 deaths occur yearly. The World Health Organization described it as a global health threat. At community level, its prevention relies on promoting good “community hygiene”. This study was conducted to assess practice of community hygiene measures against LFD and its associated factors. Methods A cross-sectional, community based descriptive study conducted during a LFD epidemic in a a rural community of Nigeria. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from 556 adult respondents, selected using systematic random sampling technique. Data was analyzed using SPSS. Results A majority of the respondents were females (52.9%). Educational attainment was significantly associated with safe food storage at the multivariate level (aOR= 1.31, 95% CI: 1.10-1.54,P= 0.002) while having a good knowledge of LFD was a significant predictor of maintaining good housing standards (aOR= 3.73, 95% CI: 1.09-12.80,P=0.036). Conclusions Predictors of practice of community hygiene against LFD include education and having an excellent knowledge of LFD. To improve community hygiene practices in the community, there is need for a comprehensive LFD behavior change communication intervention. Key messages Cubing the global threat of LFD depends on its effective prevention in endemic West African communities. This study shows that such preventive measures are poor and there is need for more response to address the problem.

scholarly journals Determinants of Insurance Penetration in West African Countries: A Panel Auto Regressive Distributed Lag Approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (8) ◽  
pp. 350
Author(s):  
Odunayo Olarewaju ◽  
Thabiso Msomi
Keyword(s):  
Banking Sector ◽  
West African ◽  
Education Sector ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Distributed Lag ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Short Run ◽  
Auto Regressive ◽  
Insurance Penetration ◽  
The Government

This study analyses the long- and short-term dynamics of the determinants of insurance penetration for the period 1999Q1 to 2019Q4 in 15 West African countries. The panel auto regressive distributed lag model was used on the quarterly data gathered. A cointegrating and short-run momentous connection was discovered between insurance penetration along with the independent variables, which were education, productivity, dependency, inflation and income. The error correction term’s significance and negative sign demonstrate that all variables are heading towards long-run equilibrium at a moderate speed of 56.4%. This further affirms that education, productivity, dependency, inflation and income determine insurance penetration in West Africa in the long run. In addition, the short-run causality revealed that all the pairs of regressors could jointly cause insurance penetration. The findings of this study recommend that the economy-wide policies by the government and the regulators of insurance markets in these economies should be informed by these significant factors. The restructuring of the education sector to ensure finance-related modules cut across every faculty in the higher education sector is also recommended. Furthermore, Bancassurance is also recommended to boost the easy penetration of the insurance sector using the relationship with the banking sector as a pathway.

scholarly journals Ebola viral disease in West Africa: a threat to global health, economy and political stability

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Semeeh Akinwale Omoleke ◽  
Ibrahim Mohammed ◽  
Yauba Saidu
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Global Health ◽  
International Development ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
West African ◽  
Local Economy ◽  
Transport Systems ◽  
Health Economy ◽  
Societal Impacts

The West African sub-continent is currently experiencing its first, and ironically, the largest and longest Ebola viral diseases (EVD) outbreak ever documented in modern medical history. The current outbreak is significant in several ways, including longevity, magnitude of morbidity and mortality, occurrence outside the traditional niches, rapid spread and potential of becoming a global health tragedy. The authors provided explicit insights into the current and historical background, drivers of the epidemic, societal impacts, status of vaccines and drugs development and proffered recommendations to halt and prevent future occurrences. The authors reviewed mainly five databases and a hand search of key relevant literature. We reviewed 51 articles that were relevant up until the 18th of August 2014. The authors supplemented the search with reference list of relevant articles and grey literature as well as relevant Internet websites. Article searches were limited to those published either in English or French. There are strong indications that the EVD may have been triggered by increased human activities and encroachment into the forest ecosystem spurred by increasing population and povertydriven forest-dependent local economy. Containment efforts are being hampered by weak and fragile health systems, including public health surveillance and weak governance, certain socio-anthropological factors, fast travels (improved transport systems) and globalization. The societal impacts of the EBV outbreak are grave, including economic shutdown, weakening of socio-political systems, psychological distress, and unprecedented consumption of scarce health resources. The research and development (R&D) pipeline for product against EBV seems grossly insufficient. The outbreak of Ebola and the seeming difficulty to contain the epidemic is simply a reflection of the weak health system, poor surveillance and emergency preparedness/ response, poverty and disconnect between the government and the people in many West African countries. Although interventions by the United Nations and other international development agencies could ultimately halt the epidemic, local communities must be engaged to build trust and create demand for the public health interventions being implemented in the Ebola-ravaged populations. In the intermediate and long term, post-Ebola rehabilitation should focus on strengthening of health systems, improving awareness about zoonosis and health behaviors, alleviating poverty and mitigating the impact of triggering factors. Finally, national governments and international development partners should mobilize huge resources and investments to spur or facilitate R&D of disease control tools for emerging and pernicious infectious diseases (not limited to EVD).

Challenging Popularized Narratives of Immigrant Youth From West Africa: Examining Social Processes of Navigating Identities and Engaging Civically

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 279-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vaughn W. M. Watson ◽  
Michelle G. Knight-Manuel
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Immigrant Youth ◽  
The United States ◽  
Social Processes ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
West African ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Media Narratives

Given polarizing popular-media narratives of immigrant youth from West African countries, we construct an interdisciplinary framework engaging a Sankofan approach to analyze education research literature on social processes of navigating identities and engaging civically across immigrant youth’s heritage practices and Indigenous knowledges. In examining social processes, we disrupt three areas of inequalities affecting educational experiences of immigrant youth: (a) homogenizing notions of a monolithic West Africa and immigrant youth’s West African countries, (b) deficit understandings of identities and the heterogeneity of Black immigrant youth from West African countries living in the United States, and (c) singular views of youth’s civic engagement. We provide implications for researchers, policymakers, and educators to better meet youth’s teaching and learning needs.

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